A higher standard

The three letter writers who condemned artist Fernando Botero because he criticized the U.S. by going on a world tour with his Abu Ghraib paintings missed his point [Letters, July 24]. Why, they asked, didn’t Botero criticize the much greater cruelties in Hussein’s Iraq, North Korea and Palestine?

But those are places where injustice is the norm and no one expects any better. The U.S., on the other hand, is exalted by most of the world for its freedom and humanity -- of which Americans proudly boast -- and, as Botero pointed out, should be held to a higher standard. When the ideal is seen to be less than perfect, criticisms of self-proclaimed superiority can be expected.

Forrest G. Wood

Bakersfield